Emiliano Sironi

Young Italian NEETs (Not in Employment, Education, or Training) and the Influence of Their Family Background.

This work investigates the relationship between family variables (parents’ educational level, relationship quality, intrusiveness, support, and autonomy) and young Italians’ status as NEETs (Not in Employment, Education, or Training). We used data from a representative sample of 9,087 young Italians. Each participant filled out an anonymous online questionnaire that contained several scales to measure the variables mentioned above. The results reveal that parents’ educational level and support have a protective effect on the risk of becoming a NEET for both genders. Autonomy has a specific negative impact for males while intrusiveness has a positive impact mainly for females.

Microfinance institutions in Africa, Asia, and Latin America: an empirical analysis of operational efficiency, institutional context and costs

This paper presents an empirical analysis of the operational efficiency of microfinance institutions. Using a cross section of 750 microfinance institutions operating in Asia, Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa, the analysis shows that operating costs and efficiency are negatively related. More specifically, operating costs are lower when institutions are more focused on traditional financial aspects of commercial banking, thereby improving their efficiency, and enhancing the development of the sector and the quality of offered services. Successively, the study takes into consideration how these above described relationships are declined in different geographical areas. Additional explanations to the observed outcome highlight the importance of different legal and institutional frameworks and of features of macro-governance.

Condizione lavorativa e mobilità internazionale delle nuove generazioni italiane

Durante gli ultimi decenni la struttura sociale ed economica delle societa occidentali ha sperimentato profondi e radicali cambiamenti. Quelli che fra tutti hanno pagato di piu per il contesto economico avverso sono stati i giovani. Il problema di una lunga attesa per la prima occupazione e gli alti tassi di disoccupazione ha interessato le scienze sociali ad analizzare la condizione economica degli under 30 e le strategie che questi hanno messo in atto per affrontare la difficile situazione. Questo contributo aspira ad indagare alcune delle problematiche riguardanti le difficolta dei giovani nel raggiungere la propria indipendenza economica, focalizzandoci specialmente sulle dinamiche e sulle strategie di mobilita interregionale e internazionale alla ricerca di migliori condizioni lavorative e di vita.

Hospital differences in rates of cesarean deliveries in the Sardinian region: An observational study

Background: The rates of cesarean deliveries have been increasing steadily in several European countries in recent decades, with Italy having the second-highest rate (38% in 2010), causing concern and debate about the appropriateness of many interventions. Moreover, some recent studies suggest that rates of common obstetric interventions are not homogeneous across hospitals, maybe not only because of patient case mix but also possibly because of different hospital practices and cultures. Thus, it is important to investigate whether the variation in rates of cesarean sections can be traced back to patient characteristics or whether it depends upon context variables at the hospital level. Objective and method: Using official hospital abstracts on deliveries that occurred in Sardinia over a two-year period, we implement multilevel logistic regression models in order to assess whether the observed differences in cesarean rates across hospitals can be justified by case-mix differences across hospitals. Results: The between-hospital variation in rates of cesarean delivery is estimated to be 0.388 in the model with only the intercept and 0.382 in the model controlling for the mother’s clinical and sociodemographic characteristics. Conclusions: The results show that taking into account the individual characteristics of delivered mothers is not enough to justify the observed variation across hospital rates, suggesting the important role of unobserved variables at the hospital level in determining cesarean section rates.

Random effects clustering in multilevel modeling: choosing a proper partition

A novel criterion for estimating a latent partition of the observed groups based on the output of a hierarchical model is presented. It is based on a loss function combining the Gini income inequality ratio and the predictability index of Goodman and Kruskal in order to achieve maximum heterogeneity of random effects across groups and maximum homogeneity of predicted probabilities inside estimated clusters. The index is compared with alternative approaches in a simulation study and applied in a case study concerning the role of hospital level variables in deciding for a cesarean section.

Estimating the Effect of Prenatal Care on Birth Outcomes

Using data from official hospital abstracts on deliveries occurred in Sardinia during the years 2010 and 2011, we implemented an Augmented Inverse Probability Weighted (AIPW) model in order to study the effect of increased prenatal care during pregnancy on birth outcomes. Results showed that moderate levels of prenatal care, as measured by the number of sonograms, increase the Apgar score of the infant, while a higher number of sonograms does not have any additional marginal effect on the outcome.

The Effect of the Adoption of an Alternative Corporate Governance System on Firms' Performances. The Case of Italian Unlisted SMEs

Purpose – Alternative corporate governance systems (CGSs) have attracted a significant bulk of research recently. While the connection between the adoption of an alternative system (one tier board or two tier board system) and firms’ performances has not been fully analysed yet, the purpose of this paper is to analyse whether companies which have turned into an alternative board system have eventually improved their performance over time. Design/methodology/approach – Using a sample of more than 15,000 Italian unlisted joint stock companies, the authors compare performance outcomes in 2009 of firms adopting alternative systems with performances of firms that maintained the system in force before the 2003 Corporate Law Reform (defined as “traditional”). Because of the choice of an alternative system (one tier or two tier board) instead of a traditional one is not random, the authors reduce selection bias implementing matching methods and comparing firms that are close in terms of propensity score measured ...

Profilo economico delle donne nel disagio post-partum. Un’indagine empirica presso l’Ospedale Niguarda di Milano

The purpose of this work is the study of the personal characteristics of mothers who requested the child-care benefits of the project called “Fiocchi in Ospedale” in the days immediately following childbirth. The work is based on the results of a survey led at Niguarda Hospital in Milan involving a sample of 120 women, some of them enrolled in the project “Fiocchi in Ospedale”. The results of a probit analysis show that: (i) the unemployment condition of the mother is one of the main predictors for the need for assistance; (ii) there is an inverted “U-shaped” relationship between age of the mother and the need for assistance. (iii) the education of the mother seems to not significantly affect the likelihood of benefits.

The Length of Legal Disputes and the Decision to Appeal in Italian Courts

Gravelle shows that delay in legal process causes the costs of justice increase and reducesthe demand for justice. In this work we test Gravelles argument for Italy by analysing the relationship between the number of new appeals and the average delay in the corresponding disputes at first instance.The results do not contradict Gravelles argument with respect to labour disputes and ordinary disputes that fall within the jurisdiction of the Courts of Appeal. Conversely, we found no significant correlation with respect to appeals in ordinary disputes falling within the jurisdiction of the Courts of Law (against the decision of a Peace Officer) and a not clear effect for social welfare disputes.